MAC: portforward/firewall question

[willndmb]

hi guys
i am on a mac as the title states
i have neem UL/DLing torrents with no problem
i followed the directions here http://www.portforward.com/routers.htm
to forward my ports and (what i thought would also) take down my firewall

i am getting much faster DL speeds, so i know i got that right
but i still show up as firewalled, ie in "red" and not connectable

any ideas or help?
thanks

[U2Lynne]

In System Preferences > Network > select the configure with the green light > Configure, what does it say next to "Configure IPv4"? And how about for IP Address (something like 192.168.1.xxx)? And is that IP Address the same one you have entered in your router? And is your Mac firewall off (System Preferences > Sharing > Firewall)? And do you have any anti-virus protection?

[willndmb]

Iv4 says Using DHCP
the ip addy is the same i used, i know that because i had to open up the prefs to get it
firewall is OFF
no virus programs installed on this comp

[U2Lynne]

If you use DHCP, then everytime you restart your computer, you will be assigned a different local static IP (192.168.1.xxx). Since you will get a different one every time, then trying to forward your ports for it is very difficult. Every time you restart your computer, you would have to go find your local IP and then go into your router and forward your ports for your new IP. The best thing to do it so set your Mac up to NOT use DHCP using this guide: http://www.portforward.com/networkin...ic-Mac10.4.htm Most routers will allow you to set a range of IPs for the computers using DHCP and then a range of IPs for those computers using a static IP. For instance, mine is set for DHCP for IPs between 192.168.1.200-192.168.1.254 and then if a computer has a static IP NOT between those numbers then life is fine for it. If someone comes over and wants to connect to our network using DHCP, they will be assigned an IP in that range I listed.

Are you the only computer on your home system?

[willndmb]

well i have not restarted since i set everything up
but i see what you mean

i have 3 comps on the network daily and another 1 a few times a yr
plus any friends that come over
only 1 is used for BT currently

do you know how setting up my laptop with a manual addy would work if i took it somewhere else?
will it need to be changed back to dhcp to work "on the road"?

[U2Lynne]

And will your router allow you to have some computers using DHCP (which you would have all computers except yours do) and then some using a static IP (which you would do for yours). Which router type and model number do you have?

[willndmb]

i have a actiontec m1424wr
its a modem and router all in one

i wasn't sure if i can mix and match the manual and dhcp because the link above said to have all comps set up the same way

the other tricky part is the images shown at portforward.com do not match the actual ones that come up on the screen when you log into the router (verizon has it set up slightly different), so it takes some searching to find stuff and i might have overlooked a box to check or something

[willndmb]

i don't know
i just went through the whole thing again and i have the same result
with one exception...
if i set it to manual i can not go online period, the router is not excepting my manual address

[cleantone]

Doesn't the firewall need to be on? It can be at least.

[U2Lynne]

Most Mac users that I know, don't turn on their firewall.


Will, if you use a static IP on your Mac (which you need to do), then you will not be able to connect to the internet unless your router is aware and allows you to use a static IP (which you found out). I'll google around and see what I can find about your router/modem.

[U2Lynne]

It looks like you want to go to your router and then the DHCP tab. And in that area you set a start range and and end range. Those numbers will represent the dynamic IPs you are giving out. I'd set something like 192.168.1.200 to 192.168.1.254. Now, you can give yourself a static IP that is NOT within that range, like 192.168.1.100. See if that works for you. When you make that change and save it, you may have to go to the other two computers, if they are on, and do a "ipconfig /release all", then "ipconfig /renew" in the terminal to get them a new local IP (or just restart the computers). If the IP they had been assigned before you change the router settings is not in the 192.168.1.200 to 192.168.1.254 range, then they would have problems.

[willndmb]

i'm going to give this a try
thanks